2014 Olympics bring promise, pressure to Russia

With the Vancouver Olympics coming to a close, the focus turns across the world to Russia's first Winter Games in 2014 - taking the Olympic movement to a new territory and a new set of challenges.

Do svidanya (goodbye), Vancouver. Do vstretchi (see you) in Sochi. "We are next," Sochi organizing chief Dmitry Chernyshenko said. "The bar has been well and truly raised."

Organizers are preparing for an event that has the prestige of Russia and its leaders - including Prime Minister Vladimir Putin - on the line.

Ever since Sochi was awarded the games by the International Olympic Committee three years ago, questions have been raised: Can Sochi complete its massive construction projects on time? Will the funding be there? Will the games be safe in a city near the separatist Abkhazia region in neighboring Georgia?

Sochi, established as a summer resort under Josef Stalin, has about 500,000 people in Russia's Krasdonar region. Olympic organizers hope the Games will help turn the area into a year-round, world-class destination for Russians and foreign tourists alike.

Norway gold: Norway's Petter Northug won his fourth medal of the Olympics, using his trademark sprint to overtake Germany's Axel Teichmann on the final straightaway and win the 50-kilometer classical cross-country race.

Slovak reprimanded: Lubomir Visnovsky, a Slovakian who plays for the Edmonton Oilers, tested positive for a stimulant contained in a cold medication and received a reprimand from the IOC.

This is only the second doping violation of these Olympics. A female Russian hockey player was reprimanded after testing positive for a stimulant before the Games.

The "International" trail will be known as "Lindsey's." It was used for speed events in the world championships at Vail and Beaver Creek in Colorado in 1989 and 1999.

Money for family: American luger Tony Benshoof is raising money for the family of Nodar Kumaritashvili, the Georgian athlete killed in a Feb. 12 training run on the track at Whistler, by auctioning the speed suit he wore.